Shakespeare for Kids Opens Today at the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival

Center Valley, PA – “If you want to tame a Shrew, look both ways for who is who…” The sing-along is a favorite component for kids and their grown-ups attending Shakespeare for Kids at the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival. Opening today and continuing through August 3, this season marks the 5th anniversary production of Erin Sheffield’s Shakespeare for Kids, or “S4K” on the Labuda main stage. Performances are at 10am Tuesday through Saturday through August 3.

With new content every year, S4K is a one-hour production designed for kids to experience Shakespeare’s rich language and characters in a fun and interactive way, providing families with an opportunity to introduce their children to Shakespeare in a welcoming, kid-friendly atmosphere.

Geared for children ages 4–10, S4K features includes a combination of songs, puppets, and scenes from Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew.

The cast and their robot, Showbot, take Shakespeare’s comedy and break it down for kids. The S4K ‘Team Shakespeare’ includes Henry A. McDaniel III, Brandon Meeks, and Bonnie Jean Witkowski. Leo Bond plays Showbot – who’s had an upgrade. Matt Pfeiffer, who also directed The 39 Steps earlier in the season, directs.

The Festival’s 22nd season also features Measure for Measure in rep with The Importance of Being Earnest (through August 4), Henry VIII (July 24 – August 4), and the children’s show Beauty and the Beast (through August 3). Oklahoma! and The 39 Steps have closed.

The production sponsors for Shakespeare for Kids are Crayola, and John and Brenda McGlade. Season sponsors are Dr. and Mrs. Frank J. Szarko, and associate season sponsors are Linda Lapos and Paul Wirth.
The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival is the Official Shakespeare Festival of the Commonwealth and a professional, not-for-profit, theatre company. An independent 501 c 3 organization, PSF receives support from DeSales University and relies on contributions from individuals, government agencies, corporations and foundations. PSF is a constituent of the Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the American theatre, and a member of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, Lehigh Valley Arts Council and the Shakespeare Theatre Association.

BIOGRAPHIESLEO BOND, Showbot. Assistant Director for A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Colorado Shakespeare Festival. PSF Credits: Salisbury in King John and Showbot in S4K.

BRANDON MEEKS, PSF: Duke of Norfolk in Henry VIII; Ferdinand in The Tempest, Lewis the Dauphin in King John and Solinus in The Comedy of Errors. Also, PSF WillPower tours: Hamlet in Hamlet and Romeo in Romeo & Juliet. Film & TV Credits: Olives (2013). Other credits: A Christmas Carol and The Winter's Tale at the Roxy Regional Theatre, Macbeth at the American Theatre of Actors, and Urinetown at the University of Louisville.

HENRY A. MCDANIEL III is also playing Elbow/Barnardine in Measure for Measure. He recently completed graduate work at London's Central School of Speech and Drama and has spent the past year teaching voice and speech at Lipscomb University. Credits: Antipholus in Comedy of Errors (Indiana Festival Theatre), Vice-Principal Panch in The Putnam County Spelling Bee (Brown Country Playhouse), Prior in Angels in America (Indiana University - MFA Thesis) and Malvolio in Twelfth Night (University of Memphis, Ostrander Award).

MATT PFEIFFER, Director. 16th season at PSF. PSF, directing: The 39 Steps,The Complete Works Abridged and Dracula, as well as appearing in over 15 productions. Matt serves as the Associate Artistic Director of Theatre Exile in Philadelphia. Other directing: Arden Theatre, Two River, Orlando Shakespeare Theatre, Walnut St. Theatre, and Delaware Theatre Co. Matt's a seven-time Barrymore nominee and recipient of the F. Otto Haas Award.

ERIN SHEFFIELD, Playwright. Directing at PSF: Pride and Prejudice, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and 20 assorted children’s shows, WillPower Tours, and Green Shows. Erin has taught at DeSales and directed for Act 1. Erin received a Barrymore nomination for her role as Anne in Anne of Green Gables at People’s Light and Theatre Company.

BONNIE JEAN WITKOWSKI. A recent graduate from DeSales, Bonnie was last seen as Madame Defarge in Wayne Turney’s adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities.